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Audio Research in Recievership

Sorry to hear that. I felt they moved too far upmarket of late which obviously means fewer customers. I have a lot of respect for the earlier stuff, SP3, SP8, various LS-range etc. Hopefully there will be a buy-out of some description.
 
I remember enjoying reading the review wrt the Audio Research D250 in the HFN/RR magazine, possibly penned by Ken Kessler.

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More piccies below...

https://www.bing.com/images/search?...tedindex=10&ajaxhist=0&ajaxserp=0&vt=0&sim=11

He described it as a Bengal Tiger, iirc. :D

I did try to find the original review in HFN/RR web-site, to no avail.

I did find this thread on Audio Karma...

https://www.audiokarma.org/forums/i...research-d250-what-have-i-just-bought.907757/

Enjoy. :D
 
Tony L said:
Sorry to hear that. I felt they moved too far upmarket of late which obviously means fewer customers. I have a lot of respect for the earlier stuff, SP3, SP8, various LS-range etc. Hopefully there will be a buy-out of some description.
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I thought they were always upmarket? or am I thinking of a similar named outfit?
 
mercalia said:
I thought they were always upmarket? or am I thinking of a similar named outfit?
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They were always expensive, as one would expect for valve kit, but the real classics such as the SP3, SP8 etc cost about what one would expect something to be made nicely from the components involved to cost. I’d not put these products in the same market sector as say the current Ref range.
 
The famous opening line of the SP10 II review was something along the lines of 'Sell the Mercedes...' So ARC defined the high end. It's just that prices exploded from around the noughties
 
Started to go wrong in my opinion when Fine Sounds acquired ARC, along with McIntosh and Sonus faber. In a familiar story, they appeared to trash the brand. They thought, for instance, they could improve the classic ARC silver/black fascia with a different look, but seconds of examination showed the expensive structural aluminium slabs were gone. Then there were the shrinking mains transformers and the prices etc etc. Fine Sounds changed their name to McIntosh group and sold ARC to its former sales director, who tried to put it back on track, I think.

There must still be value in the brand so who knows where it will go from here.

I recently acquired a Ref3 Phono which is simply lovely. The pre-amps are must-haves in my view and long-term reliable - my SP8 still has its original valves, the sp11 has had a precautionary service and the 40th Ann has not missed a beat. The power amps can be big and down right scary… but the sweet spot seems to be the hundred watters and some that are smaller.

I’ve no experience of the CD players, but some liked them very much. Bill Johnson’s circuit designs were fascinating and almost a hobby in themselves.
 
yes thats the problem and absolute sounds are not brilliant either at repairs . Very very sad news though , i loved my arc ref 5 and 5se . was hoping to get another one but maybe not know . as far as i know their stuff was at axpona this year

they seemed on the up with the new i/50 integrated which was selling well i thought
 
I used to have ARC SP11 and LS26 preamps. Loved them both, however my REF 150 power amp needed some expensive repairs few times and that drove me away from this brand. Not enough tech suppport and very expensive service in UK.
 
Sad to see a local audio manufacturer enter receivership, especially one with such a long, interesting history.

Have heard their gear many times, but never owned. Will be interesting to see if a new investor resurrects the brand.
 
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It's a shame, but the hifi market is literally dying. When I was in my 20s all my contemporaries had "a hifi" . Now the 20 somethings have a phone. In 30 years I'll probably be dead, or if not my hifi spending days will be over anyway, and nobody from the current generation of young adults will have replaced me.
 
It is indeed sad news when a stalwart brand like Audio Research faces existential questions. I fondly remember reading the formidable combinations of various ARC valve preamps with Krell class A monsters in the heady 80s. Today, the market for high-end hifi is miniscule, and rapidly disappearing. I think it is a question of time before the market is extinct.
 
stevec67 said:
It's a shame, but the hifi market is literally dying. When I was in my 20s all my contemporaries had "a hifi" . Now the 20 somethings have a phone. In 30 years I'll probably be dead, or if not my hifi spending days will be over anyway, and nobody from the current generation of young adults will have replaced me.
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It saddens me to read stuff like this. Mainly because it's true. Even now, my hifi marks me out as some kind of cranky, slightly mad eccentric to younger members of the family.
 
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